Champions League storylines: Liverpool to quench Dragons flames, Real-PSG pearler
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Two huge clashes to look forward to
Wednesday night sees a titanic double-bill of Champions League action as the last-16 fixtures kick on.
Liverpool travel to Portugal to face Porto, while Real Madrid host Paris Saint-Germain.
The Coral News Team takes a look at some key storylines and provides some bet recommendations.
Can Liverpool overcome Porto home record?
Jurgen Klopp takes his squad into the Dragon’s Den – literally – as Liverpool face Porto at Estadio do Dragao.
Traditionally, Porto maintain a fine record at home in domestic and European competitions.
Sergio Conceicao’s outfit have won their last eight games in a row on home turf. In fact, Dragoes have lost just one home game all season – to Besiktas.
They defeated RB Leipzig 3-1 and crushed Monaco 5-2 in the heart of Oporto. Liverpool are arguably a different beast than the latter pair, however.
Klopp’s side should be able to sit back a little and play to their counter-attacking strengths. They drew 1-1 here back in 2007-08, winning 4-1 in the return leg.
That will likely be the tactics again from the Reds. Expect both sides to score at 4/7.
Even at home, Porto don’t have a great record against Premier League sides, losing to Manchester City, Chelsea, and Manchester United in recent seasons.
Battle of the super clubs in Madrid
What a game we have in store between Real Madrid and PSG. This could easily be a Champions League final.
It’s interesting for all sorts of reasons. Chiefly, because Real have been struggling domestically for most of the season.
PSG have a real chance at knocking the defending champions out over two legs. But first, they must overcome a recently rampant Real at Santiago Bernabeu.
Zinedine Zidane’s side have hit 18 goals in their last four games as Cristiano Ronaldo storms back to form.
The Bernabeu hero has bagged seven goals in his last four games. The 33-year-old is 23/20 to score Anytime.
But can Neymar outshine the world player of the year? The Brazilian is reportedly unsettled in Paris and has been linked with a move to Real.
Not that any of that has affected the ex-Barcelona star’s performances for PSG.
The 26-year-old has managed 27 goals in 27 appearances this season – including six UCL strikes. He’s 11/10 to find the Real net Anytime.
This tie is really difficult to call in terms of a match winner – it could go anyway. Which means it’s probably easier to stick to goalscorer-based bets.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
